Police get new hi-tech mobile system to help in crime fight
POLICE officers in Glasgow have been kitted out with the 21st-century answer to the Tardis police box.
Officers have been issued with new mobile working technology that allows them to spend more time in communities and less time doing admin in the station.
The new mobile which has the whole police system on their mobile allows warrant checks, notes and almost every other function to be carried out remotely.
Chief Inspector Martin Gallagher said it is as big a culture change as when officers moved from using police boxes on patrol to the radio system in the 1950s.
Glasgow is he latest area to have the technology introduced.
Chief Inspector Gallagher said: “IT allows officers to be more visible and out and about in communities more.
“They have access to the police national computer, can do warrant checks and check bail conditions and see images.
“It means they do not need to come back to the station and find a desktop computer.
“It is as big a change as when police were issued with radios in the 1950s instead of using a police box.
“It is a about the cultural change in working. It is one of the best things to have happened in the last 25 years.”
Sergeant Lorna Watson from G Division has used the mobile device on shift.
She said: “It is a lot better. You need to make fewer trips back to the office.
Communities want to see police more and this allows us to spend more time on the streets.”
The £21 million Mobile Working Project which was part funded by the Scottish Government’s capital budget allocation will see approximately 10,000 of Police Scotland’s uniformed officers issued with mobile devices by spring 2020.
Humza Yousaf, Justice Secretary, said: “I am pleased that Scottish Government capital investment was able to support the introduction of this technology and I’m delighted to see its roll-out in the Greater Glasgow area.
“Being able to access information at their fingertips means officers can react promptly to a range of issues, so they can spend more time working at the heart of communities, providing reassurance to members of the public.” He said the devices and the system were safe adding: “Police Scotland wouldn’t take risks with data that’s held. It is on an encrypted system.”
The system is Pronto Mobile, provided by technology firm Motorola.
Fergus Mayne, country manager, UK & Ireland at Motorola Solutions, said: “The Pronto mobile application replaces the paper notebook and modernises police workflows by giving them access to databases and tools on their mobile device while on the beat.
“It allows police officers to save time doing paperwork back at the station and instead spend more time in their communities.
“We’re extremely proud to see Pronto rolled out in Glasgow.
“It is a world-leading mobile solution for the police, and it will now support frontline officers in the city on a daily basis.”
“We are pleased to be a longstanding partner for Police Scotland and to be able to support them in their use and adoption of mobile police technology.”
Susan Deacon, chair of the Scottish Police Authority said: “This is a really important and much needed step forward. Mobile working will bring real benefits to the police and the public.”